Objective: To compare clinical and prognostic features in patients with basaloid squamous cell carcinoma (BSCC), poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma (PDSCC), and well to moderately differentiated squamous cell carcinoma (W/MSCC) of the oral cavity.
Design: Retrospective cohort.
Setting: Referral tertiary center.
Patients: Seventeen patients with primary oral BSCC, 27 with PDSCC, and 27 with SCC.
Intervention: The 71 patients all had surgery and 52 had postoperative radiotherapy.
Main outcome measures: Recurrences and survival.
Results: The median follow-up time was 52.4 months for patients with BSCC, 22.2 months for those with PDSCC, and 13.8 months for those with SCC. No statistically significant differences on survival were found among the BSCC, PDSCC, and SCC groups. The 5-year cancer-specific survival rates were 50% for patients with BSCC, 37% for those with PSCC, and 49% for those with W/MSCC (P =.71); the 5-year overall survival rates were 46% for patients with BSSC, 18% for those with PSCC, and 41% for those with W/MSCC (P =.25). Disease-free survival was not significantly different among the BSCC, PSCC, and W/MSCC groups (P =.57). The 5-year rate of disease-free survival was 40% for patients with BSCC, 37% for those with PSCC, and 53% for those with W/MSCC.
Conclusions: The clinical course of BSCC is similar to the courses of PSCC and W/MSCC when clinical T and N classifications are matched. Prognosis does not differ for patients with BSCC of the oral cavity and those with conventional oral squamous cell carcinomas PSCC and W/MSCC.